FarmerChick
Super Self-Sufficient
- Joined
- Jul 21, 2008
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I ran across this on the net. Seemed interesting, of course it is a book you buy but I want to throw out the concept for anyone interested.
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This book describes a holistic approach to small-area farming that will allow you to produce 85% or more of an average family's food on just a quarter-acre plus earn cash while spending less than half the time that an ordinary job would require. This is not "pie-in-the-sky" back to the land utopianism, but a tested and pragmatic method that can be applied on the small lots associated with suburban living. The time savings and economic impact of this system will allow you to supplement your income, reduce your grocery bills dramatically, quit a dead-end job, stretch a retirement income or home-school your kids.
More than just a book on specifics, this book contributes to your self-sufficiency by teaching you the underlying principles of mini-farming so you can make your own unique applications of the knowledge.
Highlights
Even if you have never been a gardener or a farmer, this book will teach you:
Soil composition, soil maintenance and composting
Advanced planting techniques to increase the harvest with minimal effort or cost
Irrigation
Planning your mini-farm to accomodate dietary needs and preferences
Pest and disease control, with an emphasis on organic methods
Seed starting
Selecting and saving seed
Season extension
Fruit trees and vines, including pruning
Raising chickens, guineas and ducks
Canning, freezing and dehydrating
Selling your produce for top dollar
Why Mini Farming?
You can start a mini farm on 1/4th acre or less and provide 85% of the food for a family of four PLUS earn income. Why would you want to do this?
Are you worried about:
Peak oil? Global warming? Outsourcing, offshoring and downsizing? Declining value of labor in inflation adjusted dollars?
Are you concerned about:
Pesticide, herbicide and fungicide residues in food? E.Coli outbreaks? Why supermarket produce lacks flavor? Genetically modified organisms?
Would you like to:
Supplement a retirement or disability income? Get more enjoyment and make every minute count in your garden?
Then mini farming can help you!
This approach to mini-farming introduces important innovations based on common sense that will make your farming experiences more successful:
Intensive planting methods that are more scaleable than other small-scale methods and easier than intensive methods
A new approach to pest management - Passive Prevention, Active Prevention, Reaction - that reduces pest and disease problems dramatically.
A flexible farm-planning method based upon the USDA food pyramid that allows you to plan what you will grow, and how much, to meet your family's needs throughout the year.
Mini-Farming is not:
"Square Foot" gardening, because it doesn't delineate individual square feet, has an economic rather than hobby focus, employs its own composting and pest management techniques, does space management based upon dietary requirements rather than whims, concentrates on producing a portion of your own seed, specifically addresses fruits and nuts, advocates raising your own meat, etc.
"Biointensive" gardening, because it uses a different bedding system, a different seed starting system, different composting methods, a different method of garden planning, etc.
"Plain old" gardening, because plain old gardening is a hobby whereas mini-farming, even if enjoyable, is approached from a business focus. Plain old gardening tends to be haphazard, whereas mini-farming emphasizes planning. Thus the differences are too numerous to list.
read more
http://rds.yahoo.com/_ylt=A0geu7K_w...?option=com_content&task=view&id=19&Itemid=26
just some new info to reflect on that might help some of us
_____________________
This book describes a holistic approach to small-area farming that will allow you to produce 85% or more of an average family's food on just a quarter-acre plus earn cash while spending less than half the time that an ordinary job would require. This is not "pie-in-the-sky" back to the land utopianism, but a tested and pragmatic method that can be applied on the small lots associated with suburban living. The time savings and economic impact of this system will allow you to supplement your income, reduce your grocery bills dramatically, quit a dead-end job, stretch a retirement income or home-school your kids.
More than just a book on specifics, this book contributes to your self-sufficiency by teaching you the underlying principles of mini-farming so you can make your own unique applications of the knowledge.
Highlights
Even if you have never been a gardener or a farmer, this book will teach you:
Soil composition, soil maintenance and composting
Advanced planting techniques to increase the harvest with minimal effort or cost
Irrigation
Planning your mini-farm to accomodate dietary needs and preferences
Pest and disease control, with an emphasis on organic methods
Seed starting
Selecting and saving seed
Season extension
Fruit trees and vines, including pruning
Raising chickens, guineas and ducks
Canning, freezing and dehydrating
Selling your produce for top dollar
Why Mini Farming?
You can start a mini farm on 1/4th acre or less and provide 85% of the food for a family of four PLUS earn income. Why would you want to do this?
Are you worried about:
Peak oil? Global warming? Outsourcing, offshoring and downsizing? Declining value of labor in inflation adjusted dollars?
Are you concerned about:
Pesticide, herbicide and fungicide residues in food? E.Coli outbreaks? Why supermarket produce lacks flavor? Genetically modified organisms?
Would you like to:
Supplement a retirement or disability income? Get more enjoyment and make every minute count in your garden?
Then mini farming can help you!
This approach to mini-farming introduces important innovations based on common sense that will make your farming experiences more successful:
Intensive planting methods that are more scaleable than other small-scale methods and easier than intensive methods
A new approach to pest management - Passive Prevention, Active Prevention, Reaction - that reduces pest and disease problems dramatically.
A flexible farm-planning method based upon the USDA food pyramid that allows you to plan what you will grow, and how much, to meet your family's needs throughout the year.
Mini-Farming is not:
"Square Foot" gardening, because it doesn't delineate individual square feet, has an economic rather than hobby focus, employs its own composting and pest management techniques, does space management based upon dietary requirements rather than whims, concentrates on producing a portion of your own seed, specifically addresses fruits and nuts, advocates raising your own meat, etc.
"Biointensive" gardening, because it uses a different bedding system, a different seed starting system, different composting methods, a different method of garden planning, etc.
"Plain old" gardening, because plain old gardening is a hobby whereas mini-farming, even if enjoyable, is approached from a business focus. Plain old gardening tends to be haphazard, whereas mini-farming emphasizes planning. Thus the differences are too numerous to list.
read more
http://rds.yahoo.com/_ylt=A0geu7K_w...?option=com_content&task=view&id=19&Itemid=26
just some new info to reflect on that might help some of us
